It's one of the leading athletic clubs in the Midlands, but the success of Rugby & Northampton Athletic Club goes far beyond the gongs it and it's athletes win.

Competing across track and field, cross country and road running, the club has more than 1,000 members ranging from eight years old to those over 80.

It has recreational sport written into its very being - or at least, its constitution - and celebrates runners at all levels.

That's not to say their members aren't competitive though, whatever their age - a fact best demonstrated by a recent first place finish in the Youth Development League Lower Age Group National Final.

Running Tales was recently invited to the club's Moulton College training centre - one of two tracks it uses alongside Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Sports Centre in Rugby to talk about that achievement.

We met with young athletics, coaches and Masters runners, as well as clubs chairman Adrian White...

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Find out more about Rugby & Northampton AC, including how to join the club via this link.

Lottie Banks was a keen runner at school, finishing 81st in the Mini London Marathon and winning a bucketload of medals.

But when life and work came calling, running took a back seat.

It was only in her late-40s that Lottie returned to the sport, taking part in races including the London Marathon, Great Eastern Run, and the Big Half.

That last event in London, which was held as recently as September this year, was actually Lottie's 'Retirement Run'.

A chronic back condition had become increasingly worse, and she has recently taken the decision to start a new stage of her athletic journey - as a wheelchair racer.

In this episode of Running Tales, we spoke to Lottie about her early love of running, the joy of movement in whatever form in takes, and the cost of disability...

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Lottie is currently fundraising for a racing chair. You can donate here: https://gofund.me/4148aaf7d

Andre Cardin's big running goal is fast approaching.

Next week (November 2, 2025), he will take on theNew York City Marathon, one of the most famous road races in the world.

But if Andre's New York adventure is inspiring, it is nothing compared to how he get here.

Unfit, overweight and unhappy, Andre took a decision to dedicate his life to becoming a healthier, fitter and happier version of himself.

His tool of choice was running, and it has helped him achieve that goal and more.

Andre has tracked his journey through his increasingly popular Instagram account, @andrerunz, a platform which proved integral to his entry into New York.

In this episode of Running Tales, we spoke to Andre about his running journey, how the sport has changed his life and the big races he now has on the agenda...

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Follow Andre on Instagram

From crossing paths with farm dogs to shimmying over logs, ultra runner Kim Levinsky faced a plethora of physical, mental and altogether unexpected challenges as she set a new Fastest Known Time (FKT) across New York State’s 358-mile Long Path.

Now, a brilliant new feature film, 'The Long Path: A journey of becoming' has been released. It tracks the physical and mental struggle's Kim encountered during her epic run, as well as taking a deeper look at how society treats mental health issues.

During the documentary, Kim reveals her journey from reluctantly starting therapy to becoming a mental health advocate in her community.

In this episode of Running Tales, we spoke to Kim and filmmaker Shai Ben-Dor about the idea behind the film and how they were able to capture her experiences of the trails...

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Watch 'The Long Path: A journey of becoming'

Andy Goldsby's life was spiralling out of control. Overweight, he was drinking and smoking too much, and it was starting to effect his mental as well as physical health.

It was a chance moment that changed his life. Desperate to make a change, he entered the London Marathon on a whim, never expecting to get in.

The marathon lottery Gods were smiling on him, and to Andy's shock he was - at 20 stone and struggling to climb the stairs - on course to run one of the world's most famous running events.

Buoyed by the chance to reverse a fitness journey that was heading in the wrong direction, he started training and clocking up the miles.

Since then, Andy has become a regular runner, taking on distances from parkrun 5ks to marathons.

Along the way, he has become a run director at Arrow Valley parkrun and more recently joined forces with YouTuber Tim Stent, aka The Middle Aged Running Man, to become one half of the Marmcast pod.

In this episode of Running Tales, we spoke to Andy about how running has changed his life...

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Listen to ⁠Marmcast on Apple Podcasts

There isn’t much Sarah Lavender Smith hasn’t done in the world of running.

The Colorado resident has run more than 100 ultras and marathons, winning several at the 50k distance and clocking up many thousands of miles during more than 30 years in the sport.

In 2019, she won the Grand to Grand Ultra, widely celebrated as one of the toughest races in the world.

But Sarah had a ten year itch she needed to scratch: an event as hard to get into as it is to run.

It is a race which features 102.5 miles (165km) and 33,000 feet (10,000 m) of climb through an area of such spiritual significance to her that she can track her family roots there back to 1880.

Sarah’s date with destiny arrived on July 11, 2025 in Silverton, Colorado.

At 6am on that day, she toed the start line of one of ultra running’s most famous races: ⁠The Hardrock 100⁠.

In this episode of Running Tales, we spoke to Sarah to find out how her Hardrock adventure turned out...

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Visit Sarah's Mountain Running & Living Substack: ⁠https://sarahrunning.substack.com/

When Emily Moore was just 19 she suffered a knee injury which led to her being told she'd never walk unaided again, let alone run.

Now, she's on the edge of taking on the toughest footrace in the world, the formidable Marathon des Sables, in April.

After suffering her injury, Emily was determined she would run again, immediately entering the London Marathon.

A painful period of rehabilitation followed, but her dream became a reality with her knee surgeon among those cheering her to the finish line.

Since then, Emily has completed a number of marathons and triathlons, teaching herself to swim along the way.

And last year she turned ultra runner, completing the Glasgow to Edinburgh Ultra in October 2022.That was followed by the five-day, 123-mile Capital to Country Ultra in Nepal last year.

Her decision to powerwalk it, rather than run, saw her discover a unique way of tackling the endurance event that also featured a blessing at a school and a wedding.

Running Tales spoke to Emily about running while pregnant, how the sport has helped her meet friends all over the world, and why the Nepal Capital to Country Ultra saw her find herself again after divorce...

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Read our story about the Capital to Country Multi-Day Ultra in Nepal on our Substack page: https://runningtales.substack.com/p/from-capital-to-country-the-spiritual

Sho Gray has a big goal in 2024.

The professional runner, who is the Tennessee state record holder for the 100-mile distance, is betting on himself to make the US national 24-hour race team.

Sho is using his savings to dedicate himself to running in the hope of winning the American 24-hour race championship in November, and in doing so qualifying for the national team.

It’s all a far cry from his first manoeuvrings in the world of running, when as a youngster at a Japanese international school he started taking part in the sport - with the somewhat disputed aim of beating his sister in the cross-country.

Running Tales spoke to Sho about going from enthusiastic amateur to professional, entering the pain cave and exercising his toes, and how he wants to inspire everyone to do whatever their version of better is…

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Visit Running Tales on Substack: ⁠https://runningtales.substack.com⁠

Search for Running Tales wherever you listen to podcasts to find our audio version of episodes.